How To Clean A Chicken Coop

A clean chicken coop means happy hens, fewer health problems, fewer flies and even happier neighbors.  Read on to find out how to clean a chicken coop and run.

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A clean chicken coop means less pests such as mites or flies and less microbes hanging around to spread diseases among your backyard chicken flock.  Cleaning out your coop can be a daunting task for some.  In this post I break it down step by step how to give your chicken coop a thorough clean.

How To Clean A Chicken Coop

You should do a basic clean out of your coop once a week to remove the soiled bedding but at least twice a year you should do a deep clean of the chicken coop to remove dirt, debris, bugs and whatever else is in your chicken coop.  Most homesteaders will deep clean their chicken coops in the spring to clear the coop after winter and clean again in fall to prepare the chicken coop for winter.

Steps To Cleaning A Chicken Coop

1.  Remove everything you can from the coop.
   Remove all the water fountains, feeders, roosting bars, ladders, sliding doors and anything else you can easily remove from the chicken coop.  If you are cleaning in spring, remove any coop insulation which you put in temporarily over winter.
2.  Shovel out the soiled bedding.
   A long handled square shovel works a charm to dig out and scrape the manure, wood shavings and straw from my coop without me needing to climb in the coop to do it.  I put everything into a wheelbarrow then put it into the compost heap.
3.  Scrape stubborn deposits.
   Chicken manure can be real tough when it is dried on.  A metal scraper can be an asset in scraping off stubborn poo from roosting bars, walls and floors.
4. Dust the ceiling.
   Use a disposable long handled duster or damp old sock on a broom handle to remove cobwebs and dust from the upper parts of the chicken coop.
5. Sweep out.
   Sweep all the dirt and dust which has dropped down from the coop cleaning process.
6. Wash and rinse.
   Hose the inside of the coop out with water and scrub the coop with a stiff bristle brush.  Scrape off anything encrusted on then wash out the coop again.  You can use a mild detergent or castile soap to help clean out the ground in dirt.  Rinse the coop with clean water again.
7. Spray the coop.
   Lots of backyard chicken owners and homesteaders use a citrus vinegar spray for their chicken coop.  I use half 5% acidity white vinegar half distilled water in a spray bottle.  I’ll add 5 drops of peppermint oil and 5 drops of lemon oil and a shot of vodka to help the oils blend with the water-vinegar and to keep things smelling fresh.  Don’t use too much essential oil in the bottle as it can melt some of the plastic spray parts.  Shake the bottle and spray the coop top to bottom pretty liberally with the mixture and be sure to get well into the corners where bugs might be hanging out.  
8. Allow to air dry.
   Open up the doors and windows and let the coop air dry thoroughly before putting down fresh bedding.
9. Wash and dry coop parts.
   Wash the roosting bars, feeders and waterers with soap and water.  Spray roosting bars with the vinegar spray and allow to air dry.

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Cleaning A Chicken Run

Chicken coop runs need cleaning too and if left will attract flies because chickens poop everywhere.  I’ve found the best way to clean a chicken run is to use a rake to pile up all of the manure, straw, bits of weeds, food etc. then to use a shovel to get it all into a wheelbarrow then over to the compost bins.  Scatter straw or wood shavings down to cover the ground.  It is the ground which attracts the flies in my garden and I try to scrape up the poop and straw every couple to weeks.

Tips for A Sweeter Smelling Coop

Here are some more chicken coop cleaning tips for you to try:

• Chickens poop a lot and one of the best ways to keep the flies and smells down in your coop and run is to keep things dry, when stuff gets wet in the coop that’s when things start to get stinky.  I recently switched from plastic chicken waterer which leaked All. The. Time. to a galvanized chicken waterer which doesn’t drip :).  A dry coop and run makes cleaning a lot easier.
• Some homesteaders use empty feed bags to make poop collectors or cover the walls to reduce the build up on them to make it easier to clean.
• Use fly strips around the outside of the run or coop to help control the fly population between cleanings.
• Dust the chicken run dirt with lime then cover with hay or straw to reduce bacteria and flies.
• Layer woodchips in the run.
• Add herbs to your nest boxes and coop to keep things smelling fresh.

What’s your best tip to clean a chicken coop?

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